Unidirectional flow valve



Feb. 28, 1950 W.l M. DOTTS, JR., ET AL UNIDIRECTIONAL FLOW VALVE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 c. RAW

Filed March 24,. 1948 Feb. 28, 1950 y w. M. DoTTsQJR., Ef AL 2,498,985

UNIDIRECTIONAL FLOW VALVE Filed March 24, 1948 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 6 mnunnumn-n Wal terMoZtgJ/r. and Jams R .Marrfon Feb. 28, 1950 w. DOT-rs, JR., lETAI. 2,498,985

UNIDIRECTIONAL FLOW VALVE 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed March 24,1948

.n wm my S L n Patented Feb. 28, 1950 UNIDIRECTINAL FLOW VALVE Walter M. Dotts, Jr., Richmond, Va., and James R. Morrison, Brunswick, Maine Application March 24, 1948, Serial N o. 16,754

12 Claims.

This invention relates to a proprietary container and more particularly to a closure device for rendering a proprietary container or bottle nonrellable. The device is adapted to be placed in the bottle or container opening without it being necessary to modify or change any structure of the container. If desired the closure device may be sealed on the end of container opening or bottle neck.

The present invention is particularly adaptable for use in containers or bottles for liquid prod ucts of the character which are commonly dispensed in small quantities until the container is emptied but is likewise adaptable to any type of proprietary container which usually carries the trade-mark of the manufacturer. Because there is no practical way of marking liquid products with the trade-mark of the manufacturer except by placing the name or trade-mark on the container, it is highly desirable to prevent unauthorized persons from taking a portion or all of the liquid contents out of the proprietary container and either diluting it or replacing it with other materials or ingredients of inferior quality. For example, in tap rooms, beauty parlors or the like, where the contents of bottles are frequently sold a small quantity at a time, usually being dispensed from the original container, the manufacturer has a very denite interest in preventing the container or bottle bearing his trade-mark from being used as a container for any liquid other than that with which he originally lled the bottle, in order to preserve the reputation of the quality of his products. Furthermore, in the case of alcoholic beverages or any other products which are subject to special taxes, it is highly desirable to prevent the alteration of the original contents or to prevent refilling of the bottle after the original contents have been removed.

Heretofore numerous attempts have been made to provide closure devices to render a container or bottle non-rellable. Most of'these prior devices, however, have been subject to the objection that they only partially solve the problem, thatis, they only prevent relling in the normal manner inA which the container is usually lled. It is common practice for unauthorized persons to more or less completely evacuate a bottle or container and then to place the bottle or container under the surface of a liquid for the purpose of causing the external liquid to be sucked past these prior devices into the bottle or container. Also, in some cases, an empty or partially empty container or bottle is held under the surface of expelled from' the bottle, thus opening the valves and, while they are thus held open by outgoing air, permitting liquid to enter the bottle past the valves to replace the expelled air. Furthermore, heat may be applied to valves themselves for the purpose of momentarily or permanently deforming the valves to permit the refilling of the bottle. Absolute protection against substitution for or replacement of the original liquid contents without readily detectable evidence that the closure device has been tampered with, is the ultimate goal of the present invention. Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a novel closure device particularly adaptable to proprietary containers or bottles operative to prevent the introduction of a substantial amount of liquid into the container while at the same time permitting the ready outward ilow of the original contents of the container.

Another object of the present invention is to provide such a closure device of the type described which will be simple, inexpensive, and which can be readily applied to a container opening after the container has been lled.

Another object is to providea closure device of the type described which will be substantially foolproof and tamper-proof and which will clearly give evidence if it has been tampered with.

Another object is to provide a novel closure device for bottles and containers operative to prevent the entrance of liquids and so constructed that an injury to the device sufficient to overcome n its function will be readily detectable.

a hot liquid for the purpose of causing air to be Another object is to provide an improved closure device for bottles and containers operative to prevent unauthorized refilling of the container without substantially interfering with the emptying characteristics of the bottle or container.

Other and further objects, advantages and capabilities of the invention will become apparent from the following description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 is a vertical section of a bottle showing the non-refillable closure device in the neck of the bottle;

Figure 2 is a vertical section of a modied form of the invention showing the non-reflllable closure device sealed to the outer end of the bottle neck;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section on line 3--3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 is a partial vertical section on line 4-4 of Figure 3;

Figure 5 is a partial vertical sectQrl on line 5 5 of Figure 3;

Figure 6 is a partial horizontal section on line 6 6 of Figure 4;

Figure 7 is a plan section in a plane transverse to the neck of a bottle and above the closure device looking toward the bottle showing the arrangement of the passages leading through the baille to the valves;

Figures 8 and 9 are partial vertical sections of modied forms of the valve structures;

Figure 10 is a sectional plan view on line l-I Il of Figure 11;

Figure 11 is a partial vertical section on line II-H of Figure 10;

Figure 12 is a horizontal section on line I2-l2 of Figure 11;

Figure 13 is a horizontal section on line iii-I3 of Figure 14;

Figure 14 is a partial vertical section on line lll-I4 of Figure 13; and

Figure 15 is a partial horizontal section on line l-I5 of Figure 14.

The present invention departs markedly from the prior practice in providing a simple unidirectional flow device for containers. While prior devices merely provide openings and valves to close those openings, this invention takes into consideration factors such as the size of the openings., the density and surface tension of the liquids, and certain other physical principles which make it possible in accordance with the present invention to use an extremely simple and light-weight valve.

The basic concept resides in the use of a small orifice of a critical size, depending upon certain factors mentioned hereinafter, and a very lightweight valve member closing the orice at the critical moment to prevent reverse ow of liquid into the bottle or container. In order to provide the necessary volume of flow in the desired direction out of the bottle or container, it is merely necessary to multiply the number of the openings of critical size as desired. In order to further increase the emciency of the closure device, the valve member is associated with the proper mechanical environment in the form of a chamber or compartment in such a manner that the area between the valve and the walls of the compartment is below the area of the critical orifice. Also, the arrangement of the valve within the compartment is such that when the valve moves in one direction it opens and when it moves in the opposite direction it closes and is such that any air or gas escaping from the bottle or container expels any liquid which may be in the compartment around the valve and any liquid tending to flow into the bottle or container will impinge on the valve and move it against its seat. In effect, the chamber or compartment serves as a slug-forming chamber to form the incoming liquid into a piston which tends to force the valve to the closed position.

This application constitutes a continuation-inpart of our application Serial Number 771,914, filed September 3, 1947, which is now abandoned, the basic fundamentals in both applications being the same; the present application disclosing an improvement for automatically controlling the valve or valves on one or more of the openings to improve the rate at which the original contents may be poured from the bottle.

The present invention is shown as applied to a container l of the nature of the bottle of` the type used for alcoholic beverages and having a hollow neck tube of less size that the body of the container, However, it will be understood that the device made in accordance with this invention may be utilized with containers or bottles of various sizes or shapes.

The form of the invention shown for the purposes of illustration comprises a plug 3 which carries the closure device constituting the present invention, the plug being adapted to nt in the neck of the bottle as shown in Figure 1 or to be sealed on the outside of the neck of the bottle as shown in Figure 2. The only advantage of .sealing the plug on the outside of the bottle is that it permits the utilization of larger passages which facilitates emptying the bottle of the original contents. As will be pointed out later, instead of using the circular orifices or passages as shown, it is possible to make one of the orifices in the general shape of a crescent in order to obtain larger pouring area. The plug 3 is provided with a plurality of orifices 4 and 6 which are provided with oifset passages 1, 8 and 9, respectively. In effect these, oifset passages constitute a guard to prevent an unauthorized person from tampering with or damaging the valves of the closure device by inserting; an implement through the passages 4 and 6 respectively, Therefore, about the only way the valvesA of the closure device can be effected without detectable damage to the guard or to the valve, is by the use of radiant energy or heat or by extremely high frequency mechanical vibration of the bottle. AIf desired the plug, or some parts associated therewith may.v be made of a material whichl is more sensitive to heat than the material of which the valve element, per se, is made so that evidence of the application of heat which might have damaged the valve will be readily apparent upon casual inspection` As previously mentioned, the present invention is based on the use of a plurality of small orifices closed by one-way valves, the number of the orices being determined by the desired volume of the flow out of the container. The important feature in the usey of these oriices of a critical size is that no liquid can pass into the bottle through the individual small orices while the valves are lifted away from their openings by air escaping from the bottle. This phenomenon arises from the density of the liquid and the forces of surface tension in the liquid ata small orice, rand does not occur in larger openings such as the unobstructed neck of the bottle or any other passage which is substantially larger than the critical size which will be explained hereinafter. This principle will be more readily understood by comparing it with certain commonly well known facts. For instance, if one completely immerses under the surface of a liquid an empty bottle having a very small mouth, similar to bottles used for hair tonic or perfume in which it is necessary to shake the bottle in order to remove the original contents, and if one closes the mouth of the bottle while the air is bubbling out, it will be noted that no liquid will have entered the bottle. This is not the case with a wide-.mouthed bottle. When the latter is completely immersed in a liquid, the liquid can enter the bottle simultaneously with the egress of the air therefrom and a quantity of liquid will enter the bottle equal in volume to the volume of air which has escaped. With a very small-mouthed bottle, no liquid can enter the bottle while the air is escaping, that is, liquid cannot enter the small orice concomitantly with air coming out, whereas, in a largemouthed bottle the air bubbles out through a portion of the opening while the liquid enters through another portion of the same opening.

According to thepresent invention it has beenv found possible to provide a one-way valve mecha` nism in which the orifice is of such size that con-y comitantflow of air out of the bottle and liquid into the bottle cannot take place so that the valve will open outwardly to permit air to flow out of the bottle but will be'forced shut immediately when air stops escaping from the bottle thus preventing liquid from flowing into the bottle to replace theexpelled air. v

The preferred form of the invention is shown in Figures 1-6 inclusive. This form is preferred because it will have a somewhat greater rate of pouring than the other forms because the air vent passage 6 is preselected. The valve I2 'associated with this passage is provided with automatic means in the form of a float II for automatically raising the associated vvalve from its seat when the bottle is turned upside down, thus automatically making the orifices associated with the passages 1 and 8 the liquid pouring passages.

Referring specifically to Figures 1-3 inclusive, the cylindrical plug 3, preferably made of glass or transparent plastic, is in two parts, the upper major part 3a and a thin lower disk part 3b. The part 3a has the main passage 4 and the offset passages 1 and 8 connected thereto and the minor passage or air vent passage 8 which has associated offset passage 9, all as previously mentioned. The passage 1 is in communication with a short passage which terminates'in valve chamber IIIv which is provided with internal ribs IB. The ribs are relieved at I1 to accommodate and guide a movable valve disk I8. Likewise, the passage 8 terminates in a valve chamber I9 which is provided with internal ribs 2I which are relieved at 22 to accommodate valve disk 23. Similarly the offset passage 9 is in communication with a passage which terminates in valve chamber 24 in which the valve I2 previously mentioned is located. The valve chamber 24 is provided with internal ribs 26 which are relieved at 21 to accommodate the valve I2. All of the valve chambers and their communicating passages are below the critical size, the nature and advantageof which will be set forth hereinafter. The thin disk part 3b has a plurality of orifices 30, l3I and 32 which correspond in size to the passages connected with the respective passages 1, 8 and 9, the upper surface of the valve disk constituting the seats for the different valves. In accordance with known practices, the edges of the valve orifices are provided with suitable beads to provide good sealing surfaces for the valves. The orifices are of the same diameter as that of the [passages leading away from the respective valve chambers. The respective orifices below the valve chambers, the intermediate valve chambers, and the passages which lead away therefrom through the plug 3, constitute one of a plurality of independent cells. In the embodiment shown all of the critical dimensions of the cells are below the critical size, two large ones being provided for pouring out the original contents of the bottle and the smaller one being provided as the air vent. However, if desired and if the space in the neck of the bottle permitted, the number of orifices could be increased in order to obtain a larger pouring rate. In any event all of the orifices are below the critical size as has been repeatedly mentioned above and it is the characteristic of the critical size of these cells-which distinguishes the present invention. The valves in this modiiication are preferably made of thermosetting plastic of the phenolic type. These plastics have no softening point and are not easily distorted or warped by heat or affected by age. The thin disk valves I8'and 23 can be made by merely stamping them from a sheet of the plastic material. If desired, the phenolic valve disks could be laminated by adhering to one side thereof a cushion of a thermo-plastic material such as vinyl polymer plastic. This could be sprayed on as a coating if desired. The vinyl polymer could serve as the sealing surface of the'valve and insure good contact with the valve seat.

'The valve I2 may be moved from its seat through the agency of an operatingvstem I2a which in turn is provided with spaced collars I'2c and |211. This yoperating stem projects through the orifice 32 in the disk 3b and extends into a tube 35 which is secured to the bottom of thedisk 3b. This tube may be integral with the disk 3b or may be secured in any suitable manner so long as the method of attachment does not interfere with the size of the orifice 32. For the purpose of reducing the friction on the air entering the bottle by way of the tube 35, this 1 tube preferably extends to a point` adjacent the bottom' of the bottle. The tube 35 is provided with an aperture 36 adjacent the lower end of the valve stem I2a. The float II -previously mentioned is provided with an arm IIa havinga bifurcated end adapted to straddle the valve stem I2a between the collars I2C and |201, the arm Ila being pivoted in the wall of the tube 35 as indicated at 31. It will be noted from Figure 4 that movement of the float Il will cause the bifurcated end of the arm to move the valve I2 in its valve chamber. The float I I, the associated arm ila., yand the valve operating stem I2a are so designed and proportioned that the assembly is in a state of substantial equilibrium dynamically and statically about the point 31 so that the valve I2 will not be affected by the operating mechanism as a result of mechanical vibrations to which the bottle might be subjected. The float Il has no function except when the bottle is turned upside'down to pour out the original contents. When the bottle is turned upside down and the original liquid contents are against the inside of the closure device, the float II will move toward the bottom of the bottle, and by means of the bifuroated arm I Ia. will move the valve I2 away from its seat so that the orifice with which the valve is associated automatically` becomes the air vent. The mass of the individual valves must be small enough so that when the valve and'valve seats are wet the forces of surface tension of the liquid tending to hold the valve against its seat will be greater than any force of acceleration which might be imparted to the valves through high frequency mechanical vibration of the bottle. The purpose of the float I I is to overcome the force of surface tension of the liquid and the force of the inrushing air acting on the valve I2. In the modification of Figures 1-6, inclusive, the valve I2 and its associated orifices and passages can be smaller than the other two. It will be readily apparent that there is less frictional resistance tothe fiow of air than there is to the flow of liquid through a passage and therefore enough air can flow into the bottle through the orifice 32 and its associated passages to replace the liquid which pours out through the two other larger orifices.'

There is a rather definite relation between the u size ofthe annular area onl the inside of each adsense g. cell unit at all points, between the outside. of: the disk: valves. and the inside of their assooiateil chambers. Itis preferable, that the annular area4 on the. inside of: each cell unitvv at all points between the outside of the valve,l for instance valves lili and 2,3 and the insides. o their respective. chambers I4, and lil, be approximately equal to the areaof either one oi their associated respective orifices 30 and 3l.. This provision is madeso that air comingy out of the container will com.- pletelyexpel all liquid from within the cell if; there is liquid between the. device and the mouth; or the bottle. The purpose of this is that when the flow of air from the container stops, the valve,- wiil be pushed shut, by the piston action of liquid which might be rez-entering the cell. WhenV pouring outv the original contents; oi the container it -will be. .readily apparent that air must enter through at least one of the. orifices While the liquid goes Out another. o rice or orifices. Howeven when there is an attempt; made to pour liquid back into the container, even assuming the bottle is tilted so that the valve disks may have fallen away from their seats, the extreme lightness in weight of the Valve disks assures` that the first trickle` of liquid into the cells willI force the valves against their seats, thus sealing the openings leading into the bottle. For purposes of illustration, the thickness of the valve disks I8 and 2,3 is of the order of .03 inch.

It has been mentioned above that the orifices in the closure device are all below a certain critical dimension. This critical dimension is such that no air can pass in one direction concomitantly with liquid flowing through the same orifice in the opposite direction. That is, the critical dimension of the different orifices and their respective passages will provide only for unidia rectonal dow of liquid or gas at one time. If an empty or partially emptyy bottle provided with this invention were immersed under the surface of a hot liquid, air would be driven out, of the bottle lifting the valve disks away from their seats and clearing the individual cell units of liquid. No liquid could enter any of the cells past the critical orifices while air was coming out. This arises as a direct result of the unidirectional flow characteristic which distinguishes orices of dimensions of or below a critical size which can be determined by a formula hereinafter stated for any liquid. However, after all the air has. been expelled from within the bottle,` or after the air has stopped bubbling out of the bottle, ilow of liquid in the opposite direction into the bottle would tend to. occur. However, after pass.-

ing the orices the liquid would impinge upon the surfaces of the valve disks,v thus forcing them against their seats and closing the orices and preventing' liquid from entering the bottle. This use of an orice or" calculatable critical dimens ion is in contrast to the prior art in which the usual large opening of non-critical size has been used with various types of complicated valve mechanism.

Although it is not desired to be limited to the, exact theory and the mathematical expression thereof, it is believed that the following empirical formula explains for all practical purposes the operation of the closure device mdein accordance with the present invention. The formula has been derived from the consideration of the forces present when a small bubble. of air attempts to pass in one direction through a, small orifice while liquid tendine to replace the airis urine-te more the. erneute direction einen. ta eOuSly t' rough the same, orifice. In derivi this formula expressions epresentine these two Where, R. equals one-half the radius of the orifice measured in millimeters; e represents the surface tension of the. liquid against air, measured in dynes/cm.; p represents the density of the liquid gin/ml.; g represents acceleration of gravity inc m./s ee.2;"and 1r.v is equal to 3.14159.

The left-hand side of Equation 1 represents the. force. due,- to surface. tension of a liquid around a. bubble of air whose diameter is one-half the di.- ameter of a small orifice through which the hub.- ble is attempting to pass due to gravity acting on a. sphelf of liquid whose volume is equal to the volume. of the. aforementioned air bubble, while that sphere of liquid is tending to pass, due to gravity, through the same orifice in a direction oppositetp that of the air bubble.

It will be readily apparent that the further derivation for Formula 1 can be stated as:

Fromthe above it. will b e shown that critical factors in the operation of the present invention are the surface tension and density of the liquid. The value of R is taken as one-half the radius of the orifice for the purpose. of arriving at this empirical formula, to give proper allowance for certain complex` factors such as liquid and gaseous. friction which would also be involved.

For the. purpose oi clarity, Equation 2 @an be written as follows:

D=ia=4 i. 3) 212gwhele D equals the diameter of the maximum allowable orifices in millimeters Experiments in connection with the present invention have shown that the empirical Equation 3 is accurate enough for designing a closure device to carry out the object ofl the present invention. Using this formula it was found that for pure water the value of 4 times R is approximately 12 millimeters. For pure ethyl alcohol this value becomes approximately 8 millimeters. Therefore, for certain alcoholic beverages such as Whiskey, the diameter of the orifice would be a value between these two figures and roughly about 9 millimeters. Of' course, smaller orices than this maximum will operate but the areas would be smaller and therefore would greatly restrict the flow of the original contents out of the bottle. It is to be clearly understood that the equation given above is for the purpose of calculating the maximum sise orifice which can oe used.

It will be readily apparent that the` valve might be damaged by the application of heat to the bottle neck or by the application of some implement through the openend of the bottle. Obviously, it is not contemplated that the present one-way closure device be indestructible. However, in order to give evidence that the valve is so damaged, the. guard maybe provided with a sui-table heat. indicator in the form of a` plastic plug or seal which will melt. just before a temperature is reached whichl would deleteriously affect the unidirectional flow device.. Also, a seal in. the

"form of'a plastic film may be made integral with the guard to extend over the top of the bottle and be fastened under the regular government seal so that if the seal is in proper shape it will be known that the valve has not been tampered with. Also, to prevent drilling a hole through the guard, the guard may be made of material which has been heat-treated in such a Way that it will shatter if there is an attempt to drill or burn a hole through it. This material could be porcelain, glass, or any material suitable for the purpose. A simple test to ascertain Whether or not the valves have been tampered with is to stopper the bottle and invert it to trap some of the contents in the neck of the bottle above the valves. 1f the liquid does not flow back into the bottle, the

' valves are intact.

In the form of the invention shown in Figures 7, 8 and 9, one of the valves may have substantial weight so that when the bottle is turned upside down to pour out the originalv contents, the weight -of the valve 'will overcome the force of surface tension and the force of inrushing air tending to hold the valve on its seat. Referring speciiically to Fig. 8, the closure device comprises Ia plastic plug 59 having a plurality of passages 5| and 52 which open toward the outer end of the neck of the bottle. These passages 5| and 52 are in communication with valve chambers 53 and 54 respectively, having the usual ribs 53a and 54a to limit the upward movement of the valve in la manner to that described in connection with the lprovided with a spherical valve 59, which is relatively heavy as compared to the light-weight disk valve 58. With this modification whenthebottle is turned upside down, the weight of the ball vvalve 59 must be just sufficient to overcome the forces of inrushing air and of the surface-tension ofany liquid wetting the valve and the valve seat and tending to hold the ball against the seat. Thus,

.the valve will fall against the ribs 54a and permit air to enter through passage 52 into the valve chamber 54 and through the orifices 51 into the bottle to repla-ce the liquid which will flow out through orifice 59 and passage 5|. .Also, ifdesired, a tube similar to tube 35 shown in Figure 4,

may be sealed to the bottom of the plug 5U around the orifice 51 to enhance the rate of ow of liquid out of the bottle by decreasing the resistance on air entering the bottle. Moreover, the relatively heavy spherical valve 59 should preferably float in any liquid with which an attempt might be made to refill the bottle or to dilute the original contents thereof. The reason for this is that, when the bottle is tilted to cause the valve 59 to "roll away from its seat, a slow trickleof liquid lentering the chamber 54 would floatthe valve 59 against its seat, closing the orifice 51 and preventing the liquid from entering the bottle. This provides the same effect as the action ofthe valve 58 whose lightness in weight causes it to be closed by the movement of a mere trickle of liquid impinging on its upper surface. It will be understood thatsincetl'le passages. 5| and 52 and the associated orifices :and the areas of the associated valve chambers are equal to or below the critical values previously discussed that this closure device will prevent the refilling ofthe container by any usual method. However, the use of a relatively heavy ball valve 59 sacrifices a certain amount of assurance of non-rellability in the event the bottle is partially evaculated and is then immersed under the surface of a liquid and subjected to mechanical vibrations suiii-cient to jar the heavy valve 59 away from its seat. Although this modication does not possess the high degree of non-reiillability of the first modification, it does provide a closure device which cannot readily be refilled without expensive auxiliary `apparatus.

In the form shown in Fig. 9 the usual two passages to the closure device are provided having the usual valve chambers in which two relatively heavy ball valves 6| and `62 are provided. These valves and the associated chambers and passages are identical with the ball valve 59 shown in Fig. 8. The operation of this modification would be very similar to that of the modification in Figure 8 except that in the modification in Figure 9 both ofthe ball valves 6| and 62 would fall away from their valve seats when the bottle was turned upside down and one of the valves would serve as the air vent while the other one served as the liquid passage, the valve which becomes the air vent during pouring being determined by chance as to which orifice the air started to enter first.

In the embodiment shown in Figures 10, 11 and 12, the closure device comprises a plug 10, in general similar to the one disclosed previously except, of course, that there would be three passages, one for each of the orifices and each of the passages would be provided with an offset similar to that described in Figures 1-6 for the purpose of serving as a guard to prevent tampering with the valve. The closure device is, of course,l made in two parts. an upper major part 10a which is provided with la plurality of small orifices 15 which are of the critical size or below, and a thin disk part 10b much in the same manner as the embodiments previously described. The orificesl 16 are in communication with valve chambers 11 which are provided with internal ribs 18, the latter beingrelieved at 19 to accommodate `and guide the movable valvedisks 80. The thin disk 10b has a plurality of small orifices 8`| 'corresponding to the orifices 16, of substantially the same size and aligned respectively therewith, the upper sur face of the disk 10b having the usual beads constituting the seats for the'valves 80. As in the rst modification, the individual orifices 16 together with their associated valve chambers 11 and associated 'orifices8 l, constitute one of a plurality of independentcell units. As will be apparent from the previous description, a plurality ofthese cells vof the critical dimensions are provided in order to get the desired pouring rate.

provided in this modification but it will be obvious vthat four or more depending upon the sizeV of the opening of the container, could be provided if desired. TheI movable valve disks `fill are preferably made of very thin thermo-setting plastic of the phenolicA type as described in connection-with the .rst embodiment. All of these valves are substantially inertialess vto such a deg-ree that mechanical vibrations of the bottle will not cause the valves when wet to be displaced from their seats sufficiently to permit liquid to be forced into the bottle. The=term inertlaless, used with reference .to the light-.weight valves, is v usedin arela- Three cells yare l1 tive sense and not an absolute sense; Oi' course, the valves must have some weight and therefore they will have some inertia but these valves are so light that if they are wet the forces of surface tension are suicient to hold them against theirA seats against any force that could be imparted to them as a result of high frequency mechanical vibrations to which the bottle might be subjected 'during attempts to rell the bottle by unauthoreven assuming the bottle is tilted so that the f valve disks may have fallen away from their seats,

the extreme lightness in weight of the valve disks assures that the first trickle of liquid into the cells will force the Valves against their seats, thus sealing the openings leading into the bottle. In this modcation it will be noted that all ofl the cells are of the same size and the same tvpe of valve is used so that there is no automatic selection of one of the cells as an air vent.

A further modified form of the invention is shown in Figures 13, 14 and l5 in which the closure device is similar to the one previously described but in which the valves are mounted for hinged movement instead of the free axial movement of the previous modification. As in the previous modifications the cylindrical plug 90 is in two parts, the lower part providing the necessary valve seats. The upper part of the plug is provided with a plurality of passages 9B which are axially aligned with and are of the same size as the orifices 9T in the lower portion of the plugs for the same reasons as previously mentioned. Suitable large valve chambers 98 are provided intermediate the passages 95 and the orices 91 and are in communication therewith. It isr to be understood that the passages 96 would have the appropriate oiisets and would extend to the upper end of the plugr for the purpose of protecting the valves against tampering in a manner previous mentioned. Each of the chambers 93 is provided with an internal rib 99 which is recessedl at l to. accommodate the light-weight ap valve lill. These flap Valves can be exactly like the disk valves previously mentioned except that they are hinged to the upper surface of the. lower part of the plug 90 at a point 82 adjacent and under the lower end of the ribs Q9y by means of a lamination of flexible, plastic material heat-sealed to the valves Il!! and heat-sealed or riveted to the lower disk-like portion of the plug 9D; As will be seen in Fig. 14, the maximum opening of the valves t0! is controlled by the bottom edge of the recessed ribs 99. As will be seen from Figure 14, the inner surface of the chambers 98 is concentric with the hinge point of the valves lil! in orderl to provide the necessary clearance between the outer periphery or the ap valves and the chambers S8; as the valves. begin to open. Asv in'v the. previous modification, the free. area within the chamber between the edge; of the iiap valve I0 I. and the walls of the chambers; 98; opposite. this edge should be at least equal to or less' than the area ofv the critical. orifices a6, and el'l.y The operation of. this 12 modiiication is in all respects similar to that. of the immediate previous modiiication.V

It will be understood that desired automatic means may be provided for moving at least one of the valves shown in thev modications 10-15 inclusive, so that one of the orifices always operates as the air vent. However, it will also be readily understood that if automatic means for opening one of the Valves as a modication shown in Figures lil-l2, inclusive, that such a device would be substantially identical with the modication shown in Figures 1 6 inclusive, with the exception that all of the orifices would be of the same size. The desirability of providing the automatic means for operating the valve is dictated by the pouring characteristics desired. It will also be understood that the ap valves of the type shown in Figures 13-15, inclusive, could be substituted for the flat disk valves in modication shown in Figures 1-6 inclusive.

From the foregoing description it will be. apparent that in accordance with the basicA concept of the present invention an improved and novel closure device is provided having a plurality of orifices of a critical size, with which are associated very light-weight valves. Within the concept of the present invention, the type of the valve canV be varied and at least one of the valves can be provided with means for causing its associated orice to serve as the air vent. For instance, in order to increase the rate at which the original contents may be poured out of the bottle, automatic float means are provided for at least one of the valves'l so that when the bottle is turned upside down and the original contents are against the inside of the closure device, one of the valves will be opened and held open so that its orifice automatically functions as the air vent to permit ingress of air to replace the liquid which pours out of the other orifices. Alternatively, one of the valves may be provided with suiiicient weight so that when the bottle is turned upside down the weight of the valve will be sufficient to pull it away from its seat against the force of incoming air and of surface tension of any liquid around the valve. Although this latter type of arrangement does not have the high degree of nonrellability, as does the rst modification, it does provide a closure device which cannot be readily refilled without expensive auxiliary apparatus. It is to be borne in mind that the basic feature of the invention resides in the provision of the oriiicesk of the critical dimensions with which the diierent type of valves maybe associated. Cases where by the appropriate association of a valve with one of the orifices, that oriiice becomes automatically the air vent. A long tube extending to the bottom of the container may be provided to facilitate the pouring action.

It is to be understood that the terms used herein are used by Way of illustration and are not to be considered terms of limitation. Although the invention has been described in considerable detail, it'will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many variations are possible without departing from the inventive concept. Itis therefore desired that the invention not be limited except insofar as is made necessary by the prior art and by the appended claims.

What isv claimed is:

l. In a one-way closure. device for attachment to a liquid container, aV valve supporting member adapted toA be disposed inan opening of the container, said supportingl member having a plurality of. oriiicesl forl conducting: iliids through said valve supporting member, said orifices being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in the container, valve means in said -valve supporting member operative to close said orices to liquid flow in one direction, and means operative to unseat at least one of said valve means when said valve supporting member is oriented to conduct liquid therethrough to permit flow of air through the orifice associated therewith in a direction opposing the direction of flow of liquid through said supporting member.

2. A one-way closure device forbottles, containers and the like as speciiied in claim. 1, in which the areas of each of said oriiices. associated with said valvesA is not larger than the value of a circular oriiice given by the following formula Baix/" Where D=diameter of orifice in mm.

g=acceleration of gravity in cm. per sec, per sec.

r=surface tension of the liquid against air measured in dynes per cm.

p=density of liquid in grams/ml.

3. In a proprietary closuredevice for attachment to a liquid container, a valve supporting member adapted to be supported in an opening of the container, said supporting member having a plurality of orices for conducting fluids through said valve supporting member,l said orices being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for `the surface'tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in the container, valve means insaid valve supporting member permitting only unidirectional conduction -of liquid through said supporting member, and means operative to unseat the valve means associated with one of said orifices when said valve supporting member is oriented to conduct liquid therethrough for permitting ingress of air into the container through said one orice to displace the original liquid contents of the container which are conducted out of the other orifices.

4. In a closure device of the non-reflllable type for attachment to a bottle, a valve supporting member adapted to be supported in an opening of the bottle, said supporting member having a plurality of orifices for conducting fluids through said valve supporting member, each of said orifices being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid toy be retained in the bottle, unidirectional valve means operably coupled with each of said orifices operative to permit egress of air or liquid from the bottle but responsive to the forces of any entering liquid to close said oriiices to conduction of uid, and means operative to unseat the valve means associated with one of said orifices when said valve supporting member is oriented to conduct liquid therethrough permitting flow of air through said orifice in a direction opposing the direction of ow of liquid through said valve supporting member.

5. In a closure device of the non-reflllable type for attachment to a bottle, a valve supporting member adapted to be supported in an opening of the bottle, said supporting member having a plurality of orifices for conducting fluids through said` valve supporting member, each of said oriiices being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in the bottle, unidirectional valve means operably coupled with each of said orifices operative to permit egress of ,air or liquid from thebottle but responsive to the forcesof any Aentering liquid to close said orifices to` conduction of fluid, said oriiices associated withsaid valve means being operative to direct uid introduced through said supporting member in a direction opposing the unidirectional flow of liquid permitted therethrough in a substantially perpendicular column downwardly against each of said valvek means to force the latter into closed condition. 6. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, a valve supporting member adapted to beL disposed in an opening of a container, said supporting member having orices extending inwardly from the opposite sides of said supporting member for communication with valve seating cells, said orifices being adapted to conduct fluids through said valve supporting member and being of a diametersmaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained inthe container, valve means disposed in said cells permitting only unidirectional conduction of liquid through said orifices, and means operative to unseat the valve means associated with one of said cells when said valve supporting member is oriented to conduct liquid therethrough to permit iiow of air through the orifice associated therewith in a direction opposing the direction of flow of liquid through said supporting member.

7. In a proprietary closure device as claimedv in claim 6, said orifices being. not largerthan the value of a circular orifice given by the following formula:

Where D=diameter of orifice in mm.

g=acceleration of gravity in cm./sec.3

r=surface tension of the liquid against air measured in dynes/cm.

p=density of liquid in grams/ml.

8. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, a valve supporting member adapted to be disposed in an opening of a container, said supporting member having orifices extending inwardly from the opposite sides of said supporting member for communication with valve seating cells, said orifices being adapted to conduct fluids through said valve supporting member and being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for thesurface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in the container, valve means disposed in said cells permitting only unidirectional conduction of liquid through said orifices, and means for unseating the valve means associated with one of said cells when said valve supporting member is inverted for conditioning the orifice associated therewith to flow of air therethrough in a direction opposing the direction of flow of liquid through said kSupporting member.

9. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, a valve supporting member adapted to be disposed in anopening of a container, said supporting member having oriices extending inwardly from the opposite sides ofv said supporting member for communication with valve seating cells, said orices being adapted to conduct uids through said valve supporting memberl and being of a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in thev container, valve means disposed in said cells permitting only unidirectional conduction of liquid through said orices, and buoyant means coupled to the valve means associated with one of said cells adapted to be immersed in the liquid in said container on orientation of the valve supporting member to conduct liquid therethrough for unseating said valve associated therewith and permit ingress of air therethrough.

10. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, a valve supporting member adapted to be disposed in an opening of a container, said supporting member having orices extending inwardly from the opposite sides of said supporting member for cormmmication with valve seating cells, said `orifices being adapted to conduct iiuids through said valve supporting member and being o a diameter smaller than the minimum air bubble diameter obtaining for the surface tension and density characteristics of the liquid to be retained in the container, valve means disposed in said cells normally prohibiting egress of liquid through said orifices and permitting only unidirectional conduction of liquid therethrough, and buoyant means disposed below a surface of said valve supporting member incident to egress of liquid therethrough and intercoupled with the valve means associated with one of said cells, said buoyant means being adapted to be immersed in the liquid in said container on inversion of the valve supporting member and operative through the coupling with said latter valve means to unseat said latter valve means and condition the orifice associated therewith to now of air therethrough in a direction opposing the direction of iiow of liquid through said supporting member.

11. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, the combination recited in claim 1 wherein the valve means comprises a valve whose mass multiplied by several times the acceleration of gravity does not eX- ceed the force of adhesion between said valve and a valve seat associated therewith when their adjacentvsurfaces are mutually wetted by a iilm of liquid.

12. In a proprietary closure device for attachment to a liquid container, the combination recited in claim 6 wherein the valve means comprises a valve whose mass multiplied by several times the acceleration of gravity does not exceed the force of adhesion between said valve and a valve seat associated therewith when their adjacent surfaces are mutually wetted by a lm of liquid.

WALTER M. DOTTS, JR. JAMES R. MORRISON.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 570,607 Nolan Nov. 3, 1896 770,801 George et al Sept. 27, 1904 798,640 Turney Sept. 5, 1905 807,330v Stanich Dec, 12, 1905 809,249 Davis Jan. 2, 1906 846,550 Clark Mar. 12, 1907 2,278,925 Greene et a1 Apr. 7, 1942 2,435,033 Campbell Jan. 27, 1948 

